Another great weekend away on the bike, with good friends to celebrate Cathy's birthday. I decided on Hill End , in an attempt to see the area in all its Autumn glory and colour. Because the weather gets cold sooner there, my intentions didn't go exactly to plan, however it was still very nice to experience Hill End this time of the year, with it's clean crisp weather and glorious sunshine , without the sweltering heat of summer.
Day 1: Map (237 kms travelled)
It was a beautiful sunny, crisp morning for a ride, and great to see our mates at Macdonalds , Mcgraths Hill, where we met for a coffee before the ride.
So we left Mcgraths Hill at 9:00am, through the turf farms at Freeman's Reach, then on to Bells Line and through to the Monkey Creek Cafe, Just before Lithgow. This is another great spot for a coffee and snack before we continue on to Oconnell.
This cafe is literally in the middle of nowhere and becoming more and more popular with tourists and riders.
Our first group shot for the trip. Great friends to share Cathy's birthday weekend with.
This weird metal bird must star in hundreds of tourist photos.
Here it almost looks like it's sitting on Cathy;s head.
After a pleasant break at the cafe, we head on down through Lithgow, Lake Lyall and Sodwalls, through to the Oconnell Pub for lunch.
I had booked tables inside the pub for lunch, however the sun was out and it was simply gorgeous outside, so we sat in the beer garden instead.
Being the perfect husband that I am, a cheese cake was organised for my lovely wife's special day.
Here, Jalal lights the candle for Cathy. It almost looks like his whole hand's in the cake.
My poor attempt at capturing Cathy, blowing out the candle. Oops too late.
She's not going anywhere!
"Hurry up and take the bloody photo so I can tuck in to the cheesecake!"
After a leisurely lunch in the sun, we head on through Bathurst, where we fueled up, then on to the historic gold mining town of Hill End. As you can see, the trees have lost most of their leaves but there is still some autumn colour around the town.
Matt, who joined us all the way, but returned home the same day.
Phil and Irene.
Tracey and Jeff.
Jalal (My Habibi)
Derek
Ed
And of course, Cath and I.
Always nice to see the bikes lined up outside the pub.
I was hoping for more Autumn colour, but Hill End gets cold earlier than most parts of NSW, so the trees lose their leaves a few weeks earlier. The tree lined road in to the town still looks great this time of year, so I didn't fail completely.
The pub is still a pleasant place to stay, but really needs some work by the owners.
As usual, after we unpacked, we were off on our walk around town. This time, joined by Irene.
We have been to Hill End three times now, but we have never seen so many Roos. They were everywhere and many of them were large males.
A mother with her Joey, away from the males.
The girls tear ahead while I take a quick pic.
We met up with Jeff and Trace on our walk so I apprehended them for this quick pic.
The stories this old bridge could tell.
The upstairs verandah at the rear of the pub.
After an hour or so of everyone doing their own thing and freshening up, we all met downstairs for drinks and dinner. Most of us settled for red wine this time.
One of the few fire places in the pub, keeping it toasty inside.
Drinks and nibblies before dinner.
Not the two Amigos, but the two Habibis.
Awwww how sweet.
Here we all are, on the wrong side of the bar, for our group shot.
Ed, being the gentleman, seating Cathy, (making me look bad)
Dinner time and laughs.
After closer inspection of this pic, I have no comment, in case I get in trouble.
Day 2: Map (292 kms travelled)
The next morning, after a peaceful night's sleep, we woke for another walk. These King Parrots were sitting in the tree just near our room.
The light morning fog looked awesome through the town.
This pic captures it perfectly.
Cathy charges ahead as usual. she waits for no-one.
The colours looked great as the sun rose.
Here I managed to keep Cathy still for a quick shot.
She's off again.
After our walk, we had a nice hot shower, packed our bags and met everyone downstairs for brekky.
Strong with two sugars and milk please Habibi.
This morning three bikes were heading back home via Mudgee, while Jalal, Phil and Irene, and ourselves returned through Oberon, Hampton and Bell's Line once again. Before we say our goodbyes, I take the group for a short visit to Kissing Point look out.
The mist hanging over the valley made the whole area picture perfect.
Cathy figured she'd leave her helmet on to stay warm.
Our last group shot for the trip. A great spot to visit before we leave Hill End.
The trip through the Bathurst region was excellent this morning and we rode right through to Oberon, where we refueled and had a light lunch before continuing on home, arriving about 3:00pm.
A big thanks to everyone that joined us on this ride. Cathy enjoyed herself and everything turned out well for her birthday.
